Fromm leads Houston County to win in epic battle
The cars were lined up trying to park for some time after kickoff, but there was plenty of epic football on tap, led by Jake Fromm.
The Houston County quarterback had a legendary game, passing for 530 yards and four touchdowns while setting a career mark with 122 rushing yards to lead the Bears to a 45-35 win over Northside on Friday at Freedom Field.
The Bears improved to 7-2 overall and 1-2 in GHSA Region 1-6A. The third-ranked Eagles fell to 8-2 and 2-2 in their regular-season finale. That gives Northside its first two-loss regular season since 2002.
Houston County led 14-0 after two possessions, and Northside spent the night playing catch up. The Eagles’ momentum from their first touchdown lasted a minute, Fromm connecting with Amari Colbert for 80 yards and a score on the Bears’ first snap after the Eagles’ score.
The Eagles, however, answered to pull within a score again, and Houston County added a huge 22-yard field goal by Jon David Ferraris with 4:31 left in the half, which kept the Eagles from ever tying the game.
There were three touchdowns scored in the final three minutes of the first half, including a 17-yard touchdown pass from Tobias Oliver to Marquaevious Williams with four seconds left.
The key came midway through the third quarter with Houston County still up 31-28.
Oliver carried around the left side and went down in a pile of bodies. The ball came loose and was ruled a fumble in Houston County territory. Northside head coach Kevin Kinsler was right in front the play and argued vehemently with officials, to no avail.
Six plays later, Fromm connected with younger brother Tyler on a slant for a 25-yard touchdown and a 38-28 lead. The Eagles did answer with an 80-yard scoring drive but then went three-and-out after Tae Daley’s interception on the seventh play of the Bears’ next possession.
Seven who mattered
Jake Fromm: The senior connected on 65.1 percent of his passes, but more impressively, he was a major running threat. Most of his carries were called runs, and he took off quickly when there was no pass to be made. He huffed and puffed for a 62-yarder in the final minute and was brought down at the 1.
Colbert and Watson: Fromm’s two primary targets teamed for a whopping 16 catches and 365 yards, albeit with only one touchdown. As they tended to do, but less than usual, they found themselves quite open.
West: Houston County’s junior running back was big with 102 yards on six catches and two touchdowns, plus 51 rushing yards.
Oliver: The senior had the kind of game one would expect, with 308 yards in total offense and accounting for five touchdowns.
De’Sean Dinkins: He had something of a quietly good game, what with all the noise from Oliver and the Bears’ passing game. Dinkins carried 14 times for 118 yards and caught a pass for 17 yards.
Ferraris: The junior’s first PAT of the night was blocked, and the Bears went for 2 after their next score. But Ferraris was steady, going 4-for-4 the rest of the way as well as drilling a huge field goal that kept the Bears on top.
Worth mentioning
Still breathing: The win made next week’s game against visiting Valdosta matter. The Wildcats won the region title by beating Coffee 15-10. That puts the Trojans at 1-2 along with Houston County and Lee County (idle Friday). The Bears have to beat Valdosta to make the playoffs, since a loss drops them to 1-3, and they lose the tiebreaker with both Coffee and Lee County, who play next week in an elimination game.
Quarterbacks have phenomenal night: Fromm ran for 122 yards and passed for 530. Oliver rushed for 174 and passed for 134. Together, they had 296 yards on the ground, 664 through the air for a total of 960 yards of offense.
Getting bling: The Houston County state championship baseball players received their championship rings at halftime. Georgia pitcher Tony Locey returned.
Moving bodies: Houston County moved center DJ Journey to noseguard, and guard Tucker Coody continued at center after moving from guard recently. Tackle Trey Hill was at center against Lee County while Journey recovered from an injury.
Unexpected: Northside was supposed to be the team that would drive the ball and keep it out of Houston County’s hands. But the Bears ran 16 more plays (73-57) and outgained the Eagles 700-463. Houston County averaged 9.6 yards per play to 8.1 for Northside.
They said it
Fromm: “This is incredible. This the biggest game I’ve ever played in. It’s by far the best memory I’ll ever have playing football.”
Houston County head coach Von Lassiter: “It was an unbelievable football game is what it was. Unbelievable. Two heavyweights going at it and the county/city championship. You couldn’t ask for a better atmosphere or a better group of kids on both sides of the field.”
Houston County defensive lineman Trey Jones on preparation: “It was the hardest we ever practiced all season long, since I’ve been at HoCo. They were drilling it in us, the game plan. We bought in to it, and it worked.”
Jones on the game plan: “Contain 12 (Oliver). Stop the run from inside the tackles, make him pitch it out. We’ll have our players on the outside to stop it.”
Fromm on a bum right shoulder: “I hurt my shoulder midway through the third quarter, and man, you just had to play through it. It’s the game of my life. I had to play through it. I had to throw some good balls.”
Lassiter on Fromm: “He can do it all. He can do whatever he wants to do. I told him. I called him up to the front and said, ‘The ball’s going to be in your hands.’ ”
Fromm on his run game: “At the end of the day, we had to make plays. We had to take what they were giving us, and we did that.”
Fromm on success against Northside’s defense: “I feel like they were doing all they could do. When we’re rolling, nobody can stop us. I don’t say that in a bad way. I say it very confidently and very humbly. I feel good about it.”
What’s next?
Northside’s regular season is complete. Houston County hosts Valdosta on Friday.
This story was originally published October 28, 2016 at 11:03 PM with the headline "Fromm leads Houston County to win in epic battle."